Imbalance between default mode and sensorimotor connectivity is associated with perseverative thinking in
Emily R Stern1,2, Goi Khia Eng3,4, Alessandro S De Nadai5
1Department of Psychiatry, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA. emily.stern@nyulangone.org.
Translational Psychiatry
|January 13, 2022
Summary
Perseverative negative thinking (PT) in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is linked to specific brain connectivity patterns and symptom variations. Understanding these neural mechanisms may help personalize OCD treatments.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) presents significant clinical heterogeneity.
- Perseverative negative thinking (PT) is a recognized feature of OCD, but its neural underpinnings and relation to symptom diversity remain unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between self-reported PT, OCD symptom subtypes, and resting-state functional connectivity.
- To explore the neural mechanisms associated with PT in OCD patients.
Main Methods:
- Utilized resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) to assess local and global connectivity in 85 OCD patients.
- Correlated self-reported PT scores with clinical symptom dimensions and rsFC measures.
- Controlled for psychiatric comorbidity and medication use.
Main Results:
- PT scores varied significantly among OCD patients, correlating with the severity of "unacceptable thoughts."
- PT was associated with altered local connectivity in default mode network (DMN) regions (ACC, temporal poles) and sensorimotor cortex.
- An imbalance in connectivity between sensorimotor and DMN regions was linked to PT and specific symptom dimensions.
Conclusions:
- PT is associated with neural and clinical variability in OCD.
- The findings suggest that targeting specific circuitry related to PT may inform personalized interventions for OCD patients.
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